A Blog Challenge

My friend Suzanne has been posting challenges on her blog, O Scrappy Day. Here's today's challenge "Where were you when something incredibly important happened on a worldy level? (i.e. the assassination of Kennedy, the destruction of the World Trade Centers, The Challenger explosion, etc.) Write about it."

BEWARE! It's a long read! The first one I remember was being on the playground when the principal announced over the PA system that John F. Kennedy had been shot. I remember watching the funeral proceedings on the B&W TV and remember how much it affected the family across the street since the father was a Secret Service agent at the White House.

I also remember the Challenger explosion. I was at work and when we heard about it, we thought it was a joke our boss was telling and we didn't think it was at all funny. Sadly, it wasn't a bad joke. I finally had to turn off the TV that night because every station just kept showing it over and over again. I still can't watch it to this day!

But the one that affected me the most was the events on 9/11. We had just moved into our home a month before. For some reason my husband had a late appointment that morning and we slept in. I woke up to him calling me to come to the TV quickly as a plane had just crashed into the first tower. I arrived in the room just before the second plane hit. It was probably the most terrifying thing I've ever seen. Then the Pentagon was attacked. And I was terrified even more. I knew lots of people who lived and worked nearby. Several cousins on both my husband's and my sides of the family. My ex-husband. Many ex-co-workers. My parents also lived and worked along the path the plane took. My dad worked 2 miles away and felt the impact. My mother's office and their home were both in direct lines of the path. It took a long time before I realized they were okay. I was in such shock and was quite ill at the time. In fact, I remember being in the doctor's reception area and hearing a (thankfully) false report that part of my home town had been attacked.

But the thing that affected us even more happened with the anthrax scare. Boca Raton is the city just north of where I live. Having just moved into our home, our first mortgage payment was due. We had mailed it and were surprised when the mortgage company called asking where our payment was. Long story short, our first three payments were affected! The first one finally arrived. The second and third ones we had to put stop payments on. The third one showed up months later. But the second one never appeared to this day. We often think that the post office probably destroyed some mail! Ironically, just before the news came out DH and I were driving along the road by the beach and saw a very strange sight. There was a small hotel near the beach that had more police activity than we'd ever seen anywhere! The lights were all on in the room (it was night) and there were several people in this room wearing white suits and what looked like gas masks! The small parking lot was full of police cars and everything was surrounded by yellow crime lab tape. When the news came out about several of the attackers living in the area, it all became quite clear. It was such a spooky feeling knowing that I could have been in the grocery store with these crazy people!!! I also remember how this area totally shut down for weeks afterwards. There's a lot of transplanted New Yorkers living here and they were all so very devastated. Many of them knew someone who had been in one of the buildings.

And I remember going to visit my parents that Christmas. One of the things we really wanted to do was go to the Pentagon. The day we went was probably the coldest, windiest day I've ever experienced. It was also one of the most emotionally charged experiences I've ever had. There was a small hill where you were allowed to go to see the building. On that hill was several people (a few more brave souls than Steve and I). But the one that will stand out foreer in my mind was a Vet who was standing still holding a flag. There were a few candles and flowers as a memorial. But this man never moved, never said a word. He just stood there in his camouflage holding this pole with the flag on it. It was so cold that my tears started to freeze on my face! Aside from the emotions about what had happened, I had so much feeling and respect for this solitary man. He had no sign or agenda. He just stood there. Wow! Brings tears to my eyes even today.

Later I decided I wanted to do a 2-page layout about the 9-11 events. One layout turned into two and kept mushrooming until I had a full album. I just couldn't stop! But it was a very healing experience for me and I still find ways to share it today. It's the only way I know to honor those who died, were injured or were otherwise affected by the awful events of that horrible day.

And if you've lasted this long, THANK YOU!!! Please post a comment!